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Scabies

Scabies refers to an infestation by the itch mite, Sarcoptes scabiei. Mites are small eight-legged parasites (in contrast to insects, which have six legs). They are tiny, just 1/3 millimeter long, and burrow into the skin to produce intense itching which tends to be worse at night. The mites which cause scabies are not visible with the naked eye but can be seen with a magnifying glass or microscope.

Scabies is a fairly common skin infection that causes small itchy bumps and blisters due to tiny mites that burrow into the top layer of human skin to lay their eggs. The burrows sometimes appear as short, wavy, reddish, or darkened lines on the skin's surface, especially around the wrists and between the fingers. A child who has contracted scabies can also develop a bumpy red rash.

Scabies is contagious, and is usually transmitted by skin-to-skin contact or through sexual contact with someone else who is infected with it. The infection spreads more easily in crowded conditions and in situations where there is a lot of close contact — like schools, child care or nursing homes. So if someone in your child's class or child care group has scabies, it's a good idea to have your child treated for the infection even before he or she develops symptoms.

Signs and symptoms of scabies include:

The pencil-like marks or tracks typically appear in folds of your skin. Though almost any part of your body may be involved, scabies is most often found:

Scabies is nearly always acquired by skin-to-skin contact with someone else with scabies. The contact may be quite brief such as holding hands. Frequently it is acquired from children, and sometimes it is sexually transmitted. Occasionally scabies is acquired via bedding or furnishings, as the mite can survive for a few days off its human host.
Scabies is not due to poor hygiene. Nor is it due to animal mites, which do not infest humans. However animal mites can be responsible for bites on exposed sites, usually the forearms.

Typically, an affected host is infested by about 10 -12 adult mites. After mating, the male dies. The female scabies mite burrows into the outside layers of the skin where she lays up to 3 eggs each day for her lifetime of one to two months. The development from egg to adult scabies mite requires 10 to 14 days.

The most common medication used to kill the mites is called Elimite (or permethrin cream). The medication is applied from the head area to the bottom of the feet. It is left on for 10-14 hours and then washed off in the shower. It is best to apply at bedtime and then wash off in the morning. This treatment is then repeated in 1 week. This is safe for use in children as young as 2 months. All family members and/or close associates should be treated to prevent further spread of the disease.